‘My missing piece’: Perth man reconnects with Brazilian family who put him up for adoption

Growing up, Adam Benz always believed he had been left in a shoebox by the side of the road when only a few days old. Now, 35 years later, he has tracked down his biological family and learned there is much more to his story.

Adam Benz and family: "I always felt out of place growing up because I was never really exposed to other people who looked like me" Source: Supplied

Highlights

• Adam Benz was left in an orphanage in Recife, Brazil, when he was just a few days old
• Adopted by an American family, he lived in the United States before moving to Perth, which brought him into contact with many other Brazilians.
• Between 2001 and 2011, the number of Brazilians moving to WA grew by 460 per cent, from 380 to 1,758. Today, amid the pandemic, the population is 1,748.
• Through a Facebook group, Mr Benz met a genealogy specialist who put him into contact with his biological parents and five sisters in Brazil.

From a very young age, Adam Benz - or Christiano Rufino dos Santos - wanted to know more about his Brazilian roots, but didn't know where to start. 

 

Adopted by an American family, Mr Benz lived in the United States before moving permanently to Western Australia.

 

It was here in Perth, where the Brazilian community has flourished over recent decades, that his desire to track down his biological parents grew.

 

“Brazilians are everywhere here in Perth. I've been much more exposed to Brazilian culture than I've ever been. This motivated me to look for my parents and to want to learn Portuguese,” he says.

 

Mr Benz, an exercise physiologist at a physiotherapy clinic in Perth, says questions about his origins have followed him all his life.

Eventually, in March 2021, Mr Benz and his wife decided to try their luck on Facebook.  

After posting a message in the Search Squad group, they caught the attention of genealogy specialist Julia Fonseca de Moura.

With her help, Mr Benz was able to find his Brazilian family again, 35 years later.

In the process, he also learned he was not left in a shoebox, but dropped off at the Pequeno Filho de Deus (God’s Little Child) orphanage in Recife, a city in northeastern Brazil.

Adam on his first video call with the Brazilian family: "I was in shock" Source: Supplied

Now Adam is determined to go to Remígio in Paraíba, one of Brazil's poorest states, as soon as Western Australia's borders open.

His home state is the only one in Australia that continues to keep its international and interstate borders closed because of COVID-19.

As soon as the borders reopen and I learn Portuguese, I will be there

Below are the main excerpts from our chat. To listen to the full interview, click on the photo that opens this report. The intro is in Portuguese but the Q&A is in English.

I have looked on and off for my biological parents since I was in high school

I never had any luck until this past year [2021]. I have always felt that something was missing inside of me. Like a little piece of me was not within me but somewhere else. It’s like a little piece of my soul and my heart was taken and kept with my family back in Brazil. 

There are Brazilians everywhere here in Perth, this motivated me to take action and know more about my Brazilian roots, and also to want to learn Portuguese. In the United States I never had much contact with Brazilian culture, but here I felt that I needed to go after my parents and learn about my past.

A newspaper clipping with a photo of Adam, his adopted brother and adoptive father. Steve Benz supplied. Source: Supplied

I was born in João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil

Later I was taken to the Pequeno Filho de Deus [God’s Little Child] orphanage in Recife to be adopted. I believe that that orphanage no longer exists.

But my biological family is all from Remígio, a city of 20,000 inhabitants.

I was put up for adoption shortly after I was born. I only had a few days with my birth mother before she gave me up for adoption. She told me she took me to the orphanage because the lady of the house she was working for said she wouldn't stay in the job if she had me.

Resemblance: Adam made a photo montage of him as a young man and his biological parents Source: Supplied

Growing up in the United States as a young black man

I grew up in white neighbourhoods and went to white schools, so I experienced quite a bit of racism when I was young being the only, or one of the only, coloured people at those schools. It was hard and lonely emotionally.

I always felt out of place growing up because I was never really exposed to other people that looked like me or had Brazilian heritage and culture.

However, my parents were so very encouraging of me to explore my Brazilian roots, even from a young age. I remember as a child, my adoptive mother talking to me explaining where I came from. They were always very open, especially my mother. 

I left the US and moved to Perth when I was 26-27 solely to do my PhD. I'm a coach and exercise physiologist at a physical therapy clinic in Perth. I have four degrees. Two US degrees in kinesiology and psychology, a Canadian Masters in Coaching and a PhD in Australia in Sport and Exercise Science.

"My mother always encouraged me to explore my Brazilian roots" Source: Supplied

How I found my parents in Remígio, Paraíba

My wife posted my story on a Facebook group. The story gained a lot of attention and eventually a woman named Julia Fonseca de Moura, a specialist in genealogy, came to us and offered to help.

We were hesitant when she asked us to send all my birth records, adoption papers, etcetera, but we ended up sending them. It took Ms Fonseca less than a week to track down my family.

Adam's biological mother, Raimunda dos Santos, lives to this day in the city of Remígio and says she never left him in a shoebox, as he was led to believe. Source: Facebook, Supplied

I woke up one morning in March 2021 to Julia saying that she had tracked down my mum and dad and that they were ready that morning to have a video chat with me! Not only that, Julia also warned me that I have five sisters!

I went to bed with the mum and dad who had raised me my whole life, and woke up with not only them but my biological parents plus five sisters and my entire family as well. To say I was shocked would be an understatement.

Adam's first post on the Search Squad Facebook group: after meeting his biological parents, he discovered he wasn't left in a shoebox, under a billboard, by the side of the road, as he always believed. His mother took him to an orphanage. Source: Supplied

That first meeting with my biological parents and five sisters

The whole conversation was surreal. I was so overwhelmed, that I didn't react emotionally. I was shocked that this was happening. My parents and sisters were so excited to see me. We kept asking each other questions about our lives. Eventually, I had to break the call because I still had to go to work that morning. But wow, what an experience that was.

I want to learn Portuguese for two reasons. One is being able to connect with my Brazilian family. The second is connecting to my Brazilian roots and heritage. I ignored this for a long time. Now it's time to learn more about where I came from and how it made me into the person I am today.

Now we talk every day.

The main square in Remigio, a small town of 20,000 residents Source: Prefeitura Municipal de Remígio

A map of Brazil showing Remígio in the northeast. Source: wikimedia commons

Discovering my roots in Brazil… from Perth  

I haven't returned to Brazil since I was adopted, but now I have a strong purpose to visit Brazil. Who I am as a person doesn't depend on what physical place I was born or what culture I grew up in. I'm a good man with a big heart who wants to grow, contribute to the world in a meaningful way with purpose and love and be loved. That's it.

Adam's post on the 'Brazilians in Perth' Facebook group after he found his family. "I want to learn my native language." Source: Supplied

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